Bamboo Finance and Louis Dreyfus Holding Launch Impact Investment Fund NISABA, Focusing on Agribusiness in Sub-Saharan Africa
Combining agribusiness and impact-investing expertise with long-term capital to increase capacity, promote more equitable value chain development, foster innovation and streamline distribution for smallholder farmers and their communities
GENEVA, Switzerland and AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands, October 29, 2015/APO (African Press Organization)/ —
Bamboo Finance, a private equity firm specializing in investing in business models that benefit low-income communities in developing economies and Louis Dreyfus Holding, which owns a controlling stake in leading global agribusiness Louis Dreyfus Commodities, announced today a partnership to launch and jointly manage NISABA, a US$50 million impact investment fund project with a focus on small- and medium-sized agribusiness enterprises (SMEs) in Sub-Saharan Africa. As project sponsor, Louis Dreyfus Holding will invest US$10 million to seed NISABA.
“We are excited to apply an integrated investment approach with a vast network of local expertise for the benefit of smallholder farmers and their communities, while demonstrating the value of impact investing,” said Bamboo Finance CEO, Jean-Philippe de Schrevel. “This is a pioneer partnership that will merge multinational sector expertise with access to finance and impact investment know-how, in order to actively co-manage investments from pipeline to exit. This type of active collaboration represents an important milestone in the field of impact investing”.
“Agribusiness development is at the crossroads of major challenges for Africa. With an estimated population of 2 billion by 2050, and 330 million young Africans expected to enter the labor market by 2025, global agricultural production is not keeping pace with population growth. We believe that through appropriate financing tools like impact investing, the private sector must take an active role in addressing such challenges,” said Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, Chairperson of Louis Dreyfus Holding.
NISABA will target a balanced portfolio of countries, activities and commodities, and will invest in financing gaps across the agribusiness value chain in growth markets. The focus will be on SMEs that combine social, environmental and financial returns by improving efficiency through access to data, finance and risk mitigation, training and technology innovation; strengthening market access by linking producers to end-consumers; and building local capacity through post-harvest handling and storage, value-addition or processing solutions, among others. More information is available on www.nisabafund.com
Through its controlling stake in Louis Dreyfus Commodities, Louis Dreyfus Holding has a 164-year-old global presence in the agribusiness sector, with expertise in a wide range of commodities, participation in various diversified businesses and a strong presence in Africa.
The SME agribusiness sector in Sub-Saharan Africa represents untapped potential for investors and smallholder farmers alike to foster sustainable and inclusive economic development, while capturing the value of early-stage growth.
Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of Bamboo Finance.
About Bamboo Finance
Bamboo Finance is a private equity firm specializing in investing in business models that benefit low-income communities in emerging markets with offices in Luxembourg, Geneva, Bogota, Nairobi and Singapore. Bamboo Finance uses a market-oriented approach to deliver social and environmental value and provide attractive financial returns to investors. Bamboo Finance manages 280 MUSD; representing three global funds and a portfolio of investments operating in 30 emerging market countries. Bamboo has a track record of demonstrated commercial returns, and a portfolio of investments that have provided 16 million clients with access to services and created more than 20,000 jobs.
About the Louis Dreyfus Group
The Louis Dreyfus Group was founded in 1851 and has been instrumental in the development of grain trading throughout the world. The Group has since expanded its expertise to a wide variety of commodities and participates in various diversified businesses, including global agribusiness leader Louis Dreyfus Commodities. Louis Dreyfus Commodities is a global merchandiser of commodities and processor of agricultural goods, operating a significant network of assets around the world. Its activities span the entire value chain from farm to fork, across a broad range of business lines (platforms). Over time, the company’s portfolio has grown to include Oilseeds, Grains, Rice, Freight, Finance, Coffee, Cotton, Sugar, Juice, Dairy, Fertilizers Inputs and Metals. It operates 10 business lines in the Middle East and Africa, with its main hubs in Dubai, Nairobi, Johannesburg and Accra.
